Death Ship
by Andorian Ice Princess-AIP
Summary: AU Before leaving Baltimore, Chandler and Slattery decide to check out one last 'ship' for supplies only to discover that the ship isn't deserted. What turns out to be a routine medical recon turns into a fight for their lives. Will they succeed? Or with the Nathan James be without its 2 top commanders?


**Title: Death Ship**

 **Summary:** AU Before leaving Baltimore, Chandler and Slattery decide to check out one last 'ship' for supplies only to discover that the ship isn't deserted. What turns out to be a routine medical recon turns into a fight for their lives. Will they succeed? Or with the Nathan James be without its 2 top commanders?

 **Disclaimer:** I own nothing from The Last Ship (sadly) only my hard working muse and the dream to work under Captain Chandler hehe

 **A/N:** Just a little angsty one shot that my muse came up with for my two faves on this amazing show! Set near the end of episode three but BEFORE everyone reconvenes on the Nathan James AND where both Slattery and Chandler are off the ship and on dry ground at the same time (so far this season!). And I put as AU (Alternate universe) just b/c I made my own little storyline tangent and hope that's okay! So please enjoy this little adventure :)

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 _"Chandler! Tom…ah damn it stay with me!" Slattery hisses as he presses down on the wounded side of his captain and friend; precious crimson sludge slowly seeping through the cracks in his fingers. "We need to move but…just…Tom! Stay with me! That's an order."_

 _"I give…the orders."_

 _"That's better."_

 _"You…have to get back…to Nathan…James…." Chandler painfully wheezes as he looks up; squinting into the darkness and looking up into the worried expression of his second in command. "Leave…me…"_

 _"Not better," Slattery huffs. "I'm not leaving without y…" Slattery pauses as he listens to the shouting in the distance drawing ever closer and looks down at his friend in panic. They were outmanned and soon to be outgunned. They had no working communication devices and no way to signal their ship for help and literally out of time._

 _"You're…out of time."_

 _"We're out of time."_

 _Slattery pulls his bloody hands away from Chandler's side; Chandler's hands trying to replace them with as much pressure as his fight-weary arms could allow. Slattery pulls the clip and checks the remaining shots left._

 _"How…many shots…left?"_

 _"Half dozen, give or take."_

 _"Make each shot…count or we're…dead."_

 _"Here they come."_

XXXXXXXX

 ***2 hours earlier***

"Need a lift?"

Mike Slattery looks up from his seated position on his front porch into the friendly smile of his friend and leader Tom Chandler who sits in the front seat of the beat up truck his father had lent him.

"Where you headed?"

"The ark," Chandler tosses back with a slight smirk; Slattery's brows arch in question. "Something my father said," Chandler replies as he slumps down onto the front porch stairs of his XO's home.

"They're not here," Slattery confesses in a somber tone as Chandler gives him a curt nod but keeps his morose gaze fixed firmly ahead. His mind thinks back to when Tex found the picture album of his family in the tent in the Park; his mind and heart anxious in that moment that he'd found his family or at least a note as to where they'd gone. He found neither.

"Tex and I searched the Park…found a few things of theirs but not them."

"Maybe someone got sick and they all had to leave," Chandler suggests.

"Tex said that too. Makes sense. Little comfort though," Slattery recalls bitterly; his mind back in the Park to where he found his beloved daughter's sweatshirt, his eyes watering in that minute but his brain commanding him to just suck it up. "Went back home…was the same. Empty…desolate…they were gone. Just up and left without a word as to where. I left a note for them but…" is all he manages before Chandler's radio scratches to life with a message from the Nathan James. "What's going on?"

"Copy that Nathan James. Slattery and I are on our way back now, we'll stop by…where'd you say the ship was?"

 _"Sending you the information now."_

"Feel like one last dry ground mission before putting out to sea?"

"What's going on?"

"Garnett and Chung were in the bay checking all the ships for whatever supplies we can use when they were called back for some repairs. They didn't get to check the last ship for medical supplies and asked if we could make one last stop on the way back."

"Lead the way," Slattery gestures as they both get up and head for Chandler's waiting truck and then get in.

"You want to stay?"

"Tex said I should go after them. Use my former detective connections to find them but…mission comes first," Slattery states bitterly as looks back at his home with a somber glance; his jaw tight and his heart sinking into emotional mire. "I left a note and some vials of the vaccine and my radio but…but I wish I knew where they had gone or…or if they were even coming back to get them. They're probably in hiding," Slattery concludes as they head for the waterfront. "At least…I tell myself that."

 _'My dearest Christine…'_ Slattery's mind trails off to the note he left his family; Chandler's words bringing him back to reality.

"Until you know for sure that's the best thing you _can_ tell yourself. They're safe and waiting for the right moment to go home," Chandler reaffirms as they reach the area on the bay they were directed to.

"This…is the ship?" Slattery asks weakly as they both look up to a vessel that seems like it's been out of commission for longer than a few months. "I'll be surprised if we find anything but rats."

"Think even they've stayed?" Chandler retorts with a small snicker as he looks at Slattery with a small shrug. "At least it'll be a quick stop."

"Lead the way," Slattery gestures as they both get out and slowly head for the side of the large, quiet vessel. "Looks…quiet."

"Too quiet," Chandler adds as they both trade uneasy glances. "Never a good sign with this much activity going on around it, for a ship just to be…so quiet."

"Agreed," Slattery nods as he pulls his gun; their footsteps light as they slowly ascend up the stairs to the very top of the ship. "Comforting welcome message," he points to the two words scrawled in black paint on the peeling deck of the derelict ship.

 _'Death Ship'_

"Let's just check the med bay and leave," Chandler suggest as they slowly head for the open door to go in. Once inside the ship, Chandler pulls his gun as both are hit with the pungent smell of death and dirt. "I'd suggest we split up to make it faster but I think working as a team is the smart choice."

"Copy that," Slattery agrees as they slowly head for the stairs that'll take them down into the belly of the ship. But as soon as they step into the dingy stairwell cavity, Slattery stops short as he picks up a faint but distinct 'ping' from the bowels of the ship. "Death ship or ghost ship?" He whispers with a small smirk.

"Careful," Chandler whispers as they both start to carefully descend down the metal stairs; another 'ping' being heard and then silence. "Probably squatters."

"As long as they don't have guns," Slattery retorts in a hushed tone as they reach the first landing. However, instead of finding just an empty hallway, both of their eyes silently widen in horror as they gaze upon four dead bodies; the blood on the floor fresh instead of dried and flaking.

"These guys don't. Keep going. I think the med bay will be one level down."

They reach one more level down and then stop, listening to everything around them; the 'pings' this time not being heard.

"They might have heard us."

"Let's just get what we need and get out. Stay al…" Chandler starts. But this time his words are cut off by a loud clang overhead; the door they had just come through slamming shut, sealing them inside. "Damn," Chandler curses as both of them trade worried glances. They hear talking upstairs as the two of them hurry down the hallway and duck into a room; hoping to radio their ship for some backup.

"Damn, the radio doesn't work down here," Slattery informs Chandler in a hushed tone. "We can't call for help without going back out there and giving ourselves away."

They both pause, listening at the crack in the open door to the now loud shouting upstairs; the once quiet conversation had suddenly turned heated.

"Someone's pissed," Slattery hisses quietly.

"We have to wait this out. And then we'l…."

The conversation is instantly halted, however, by the sound of gunfire.

 ***bang* *bang* *bang***

Instantly their guns are cocked and ready and both know that it won't be long until they'll be found. It was time to act. Chandler slowly opens the door and then freezes as they both hear angry footsteps stomping overhead and then stop.

"We need an exit."

"They ran to the end of the hallway," Slattery whispers as he gestures toward the darkened end of the hallway. "That way. We gotta chance it."

"Agreed."

The two of them leave the dimly lit room that used to be an officer's room and shuffle toward the end of the hallway. But just as Slattery's hand rests on the door handle to see if it's unlocked, a shout echoes off the metal walls…"HEY STOP!" followed by a shot.

 ***bang***

"AHHH!" Chandler cries out as his steps instantly falter.

"I GOT ONE OF THEM!"

"Tom!"

"Go…" Chandler manages as he and Slattery make it into the stairwell, Slattery slamming the door shut and then looking for something to jam it shut with. But there is nothing and both are forced to go deeper into the belly of the death ship.

"Keep going!" Slattery tells Chandler as he pushes his commander past him and then turns to fight their incoming attacker.

"Mike…"

"Keep going!" Slattery shouts as his weary frame is slammed into by their attacker. He had just survived a literal death match at the hands of Granderson's misguided men and wasn't exactly feeling up to another fight but this one wasn't an option as it was once again their lives on the line and their very existence at stake.

Chandler's ears pick up Slattery's curses and grunts as his body sustains a few more blows from their angry attacker. Pushing past the searing pain in his side, Chandler turns and hurries back toward the two men embroiled in hand to hand combat.

"Slattery! Pull back!" Chandler commands, raising his gun and then firing off a shot and taking out the man that was trying to end the life of his XO.

"Thank…you," Slattery lightly pants as he looks down at Chandler's blood soaked side. "Even in this crappy lighting…I can see the wound is bad."

"Think…it's a through and through. We have…to keep going."

"Lead the way," Slattery nods as Chandler turns and starts to head for what he hopes is another exit. But just as he gets there, his steps start to falter and his body starts to tell him ' _enough's…enough.'_ He stumbles and nearly falls; only Slattery's hands grasping him at the last minute keep him from further injury. "Tom!"

"More…coming."

"I hear them," Slattery huffs as he throws his arm around Chandler's side as they duck into another stairwell. This time it smells like…death instead of just musty air. "We gotta head back up…not down."

"Agreed," Chandler wheezes as his right hand clamps down on his injured side. "Double…back."

Slattery knows that's their best hope. He takes the gun offered to him by his commander and Chief and directs them down the next hallway. But just as they round the corner, a few more shots ring out and they are forced to stop and then back into another small, windowless room.

Slattery feels Chandler's body starting to falter as he fires off a few more shots, taking one more down and making the other call out an angry curse. They reach another corridor but can only curse when they realize it's another dead end. "We gotta find a place to hide…and take care of that…wound."

Chandler doesn't argue, instead he falls to his knees, his lips uttering a painful hiss just as few more shots ring overhead. Slattery half-carries, half-drags Chandler's aching frame into a small room and is able to bolt the door shut.

"Maybe they didn't…see us duck in here."

"They can…wait us out," Chandler notes correctly as his body is lowered to the floor.

"Well our crew should be missing us soon…." Slattery's voice trails off as he takes off his jacket and then presses it down onto Chandler's side; Chandler's lips trying to stifle a gasp as they hear angry footsteps approaching their location. Both of them instantly go silent as the talking a few meters away drops to hushed tones.

If the squatters as they call them had been on the ship for any considerable length of time, they'd have come to know every inch of this death ship and which doors were open but more importantly which ones were locked and why. Within seconds, the question is soon answered as the locked door they are hiding behind is banged on.

Both hold their breaths.

Another few bangs and both Slattery and Chandler pray that there aren't any blood droplets outside waiting to give them away.

The banging on their door stops and their armed attackers outside move to the next door. It too apparently appears to be locked and a collective sigh of relief is uttered by both trapped Nathan James crew members.

"They'll be back," Chandler whispers in truth; Slattery nodding in acknowledgment.

Slattery leaves Chandler on the floor and then heads for the door, pressing his ear against it and then dropping to his knees and squinting underneath to see if anything moves. Nothing. So with his gun ready he decides to chance it. He very carefully maneuvers the bolt from the door and then as quietly as possible pulls the door open.

Seeing the hallway all clear, he wastes no time in going back for Chandler and then helping him back into the hallway; this time heading in the opposite direction they came; back toward the original stairwell that would take them back up to the surface – hopefully.

But just as they reach the end of the hallway and Slattery pulls the door open to go up, they are instantly caught in a surprise attack by one of their attackers. The man in black's body slams into their, forcing their bond to be broken and both Slattery and Chandler to falter and stumble backward.

With Chandler's side sustaining another harsh blow, his lips cry out as his body staggers backward, slamming into the wall and then crumpling to the ground; losing his radio in the process. Slattery's hands grab the back of the attacker's jacket, yanking him away from Chandler and trying to take him out of the fight. But the man's got fresh strength on his side and unlike Slattery hadn't just been involved in another life or death fight so is easily able to counter, swinging out his legs and making Slattery slam to the ground on his back.

Chandler's hands grab the man's legs, giving them a good tug and stopping him from kicking Slattery in the side. Slattery twists himself onto his side, finishes Chandler's task, kicking out the man's legs and taking him down to the ground. While still on his back, his legs come up and then slam down onto his attackers chest; a swift blow to the jaw and then using the butt end of his gun to strike him in the temple, takes him out for good.

"Tom…" Slattery mangers with a ragged breath as he crawls over to his friend and captain. But as much as he wants to linger and tend to his friend's wound, he knows if they don't get moving back to the surface and call for help; they'll have a lot worse to contend with – like capture and death.

They make it back into the stairwell and back to the second landing but are once again unpleasantly surprised when the door opens and both are forced to defend themselves again.

"We're…the…US Navy … " Chandler tries, hoping to reason with the two men with raised weapons.

"We came for supplies and…"

"Shut up and move!" One of them demands Slattery as he points his cocked and readied gun in his face. "Now."

"You guys don't understand," Slattery tries only to have the other also cock his weapon, his finger itching for a fight.

"We don't care. This is our ship! Now move your asses!"

"Mike…you go…I can't…make it," Chandler instantly bluffs, faking a stumble and then reaching for the knife in his boot. He had lost his gun but wasn't completely without a weapon. "Left," Chandler whispers as he pretends to fall to the right. The distraction works as their attacker's gun lowers to try to counter; the knife coming up swiftly and plunging into the chest of the first man.

Slattery instantly breaks free and sends his balled fist crashing into the jaw of the second man; pulling him back and then raising his gun and firing off a few shots as a third man approaches. The third man's body falls to the ground just as Slattery's elbow comes up and sails into the jaw of the second man that he had originally been tangling with. But a single shot from his gun into the man's chest takes him out of the game.

But before they can breathe any kind of sigh of relief, heavy footsteps are once again head overhead, reminding them the current battle is far from over.

"Damn…they just keep coming!" Slattery hisses as he looks down at Chandler's unmoving frame. "Chandler! Tom…ah damn it stay with me!" Slattery hisses as he presses down on the wounded side of his captain and friend; precious crimson sludge slowly seeping through the cracks in his fingers. "We need to move…get back to the surface. I can't…too narrow to carry you….just…Tom! Stay with me! That's an order."

"I give…the orders," Chandler's eyes flutter back to life.

"That's better."

"You…have to get back…to the Nathan…James…." Chandler painfully wheezes as he looks up; squinting into the darkness and looking up into the worried expression of his second in command. "Leave…me…"

"Not better," Slattery huffs. "I'm not leaving without y…" Slattery pauses as he listens to the shouting in the distance drawing ever closer and looks down at his friend in panic. They were outmanned and soon to be outgunned. They had no working communication devices and no way to signal their ship for help.

"You're…out of time."

"We're out of time."

Slattery pulls his bloody hands away from Chandler's side; Chandler's hands trying to replace them with as much pressure as his fight-weary arms could allow. Slattery pulls the clip and checks the remaining shots left.

"How…many?"

"Half dozen, give or take. We have one more stairwell and then we're on the surface."

"How many…incoming?"

"Hard to tell. Three…maybe four."

"Make each shot…count or we're…dead."

"Copy that," Slattery agrees as he looks back down at his friend. "Hate this ship," he mutters in sarcasm; Chandler's lips twisting upward into a small smirk. "I'm partial okay?"

"Makes…two of…us," Chandler adds.

Slattery knows they can't chance the stairwell as he'll be shooting at shadows and in a one-sided fight with only one gun in their corner, every single bullet has to take a target out. A locked room wasn't an option as their opponents could easily smoke them out…wait them out or worse – blow them up and walk away laughing.

They move away from the door to give themselves a better vantage point and then wait. It's not long before the first attacker dares to appear – rounding the corner only to be struck right between the eyes by Slattery's bullet.

"Nice…shot."

"Three to go," Slattery whispers as they hear more footsteps; the remaining men probably wondering who had just fired the shot and who had just been taken out. None of them have to wait too long as another attacker appears; this time the shot strikes him in the neck and he falls back into the opposite stairwell with a painful cry.

"At least he's out," Slattery mutters as he turns back to Chandler. He knows if he doesn't get his friend and captain to Doc Rios and fast, the Nathan James might be looking for a new leader. "The other two…or three or…whatever are waiting up top. I have to chance it," Slattery tells Chandler as he takes the fresh weapon from their fallen attacker.

As much as they had planned to stay together, they both know if they don't end the fight on their terms; the men up to might be calling in reinforcements and then they'd be doomed. It was their only course of action.

"Mike…no foolish chances," Chandler warns with a small huff.

Slattery nods and then pulls away, giving his friend only last tight lipped glance before he disappears into the stairwell, stealthily climbing up. He had left his wife and family his spare radio and with Chandler's lost in the bowls of the ship; they had only his – only one chance to call for help once the surface was breached.

He pulls the door open and sees the backs of two men; unaware that the third was already in the stairwell heading down to see who was left one level below. He readies the fresh clip he had taken from their fallen attacker, hoping for a surprise attack. But that plan is rendered moot, as his foot snags something and his presence is instantly alerted.

"Looking for me?" Slattery tosses in angry sarcasm as he fires off a shot. He knows he has only one chance to make it count. But at the same time, the other man lunges toward him and his shot strikes the intended target in the leg; making him falter but not taking him down for good.

The one still standing attacks – his body slamming into Slattery's and taking them to the ground in a jumble of arms and legs. And much like on the Nathan James, XO Mike Slattery is once again engaged in a fight to the death; his mind desperate for the same victorious outcome.

Chandler knows he has to ready himself to help Slattery as soon as the other man sent to check on him is taken out. He slowly slides along the wall, his left hand pressing firmly on his side while the right keeps the readied weapon in his hand. He hopes he won't have to expend any more energy but knows if someone is sent to search for him, it'll be another fight to the finish and he wonders if he'll even last.

He hears footsteps coming down the stairwell, nearing him and his heart rate starts to soar. _There is one way you can take him out…._ with only seconds to spare Chandler lets his body crumple to the ground. And then he waits.

The man sent to see who was left below deck slowly opens the door with his gun trained and ready. He steps into the hallway and then stops to see what awaits him. He spies his two men in the middle and then looks at the fallen figure in navy blue fatigues.

He nears Chandler's quiet and unmoving frame with caution; Chandler of course waiting until the last possible second to make his move. He wouldn't have to wait much longer. The man's gun nears his side, poking it to see if he could get a reaction.

Nothing.

The attacker's gun rises to Chandler's face, touching his cheek. Chandler finally decides to act, his hand shooting out grabbing the end of the gun and pushing it to the side while he raises his other arm and fires. The body falls and he breathes a sigh of relief. However, hearing a few shots fired overhead, Chandler knows that his XO is in trouble, so despite the searing pain in his side; takes in a deep breath and pushes himself upright. He staggers toward the stairwell and starts to climb.

He can only curse the fight to take back the Nathan James for his lack of strength but as his already aching jaw sustains another blow, Mike Slattery's mind races with horrible thoughts that this could be the final resting place of himself and his captain.

But he knows he can't give up and so he punches the wounded man in the leg and then tries again to wrestle away the gun from the one still coming after him. He gets a small break when the already injured man takes a tumble backward on some blood on the floor, hitting his head on the counter and sinking into darkness. Just as Slattery turns to tell the other to give it up and it's over, the man manages to find his gun and raise it just in time.

"Now…it's over," the man hisses as Slattery stops dead in his tracks; swallowing slightly.

"We just wanted supplies," Slattery tries.

"Guess you got more than you bargained for," the man sneers as he cocks the trigger. Slattery can see in his eyes that there is no reasoning and he needs a plan and fast. However, he hardly as time to blink as the next few actions zoom by in record time. His attacker's finger eases back on the trigger. His hand raise in a defensive pose. The backdoor stairwell opens. A shot is fired.

 ***bang***

Slattery's body instinctively jerks. But it's not his to fall a few seconds later. Chandler's aching frame comes into view just as the last attacker on the death ship sinks into darkness. "Thank…God," he whispers as he rushes toward Chandler's frame just before it totally crumples to the ground.

"Good timing," Slattery tells Chandler as he puts his hand around his friend's waist and then uses his radio to call for help.

"Let's get off…this damn death ship."

Neither of them are going to argue or see any point in lingering any longer, if there were any useful medical supplies, both are sure the once armed and now dead squatters have used it all up; and if not them they both know others will be on their way to lay claim.

XXXXXXXX

"Hey…" Chandler opens his eyes a few hours later, lying on a bed in med bay in the belly of his ship, the Nathan James and looking up at his battered but at least alive XO. "You look…like hell."

Slattery offers him a smirk as he leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "Crew has found something new about us to talk about," he states as Chandler gently chuckles. "Doc Rios said you'll be okay. Bullet went right through. A few stitches and you'll be back to…you."

"Glad to hear it," Chandler smiles as they both hear a knock and look up to see Tex hovering in the doorway with something in his grasp.

"You left this in the truck," Tex tells Slattery as he hands him the photo album of his family that he had found at the Park. "Thought you might want it. Keep hope alive," he states with a firm squeeze to Slattery's shoulder; giving Chandler a firm nod before muttering 'captain' and then taking his leave.

Slattery opens the album and gazes down at his beloved and now missing family; his jaw instantly hardening.

"Kinda reminds me of that talk we never finished from earlier."

"You don't have to say anything," Slattery replies with a small huff.

"I'm glad you're still with us, Mike. Really glad."

"And you didn't think about staying with them?" Slattery retorts as Chandler's lips purse.

"It's all I thought about," Chandler replies in truth as Slattery's brow furrows.

"You mean…I could have had my first command?" He tosses back as Chandler's brows lift in amusement; the two of them trading knowing smiles.

"So…what were you guys doing there?" Chandler nods to the first group picture.

"First picnic in …" Slattery's voice trails off as he starts into an explanation about his family. Both of them would be leaving with heavy hearts but relieved they got off the death ship alive and would be leaving Baltimore with the knowledge that hope…was still out there.

 **THE END!**

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 **A/N:** well I hope you all liked this action packed, angsty little piece. I just had to get that moment between them at the end of eppy 3 into this piece somehow and it kinda fit at the end and hope you all thought so too! So would love your thoughts in a review before you go and thanks so much! Your reviews are the only way I'll know if you want me to write more for our boys in this fandom.


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